Preventing zoonotic disease emergence (PREZODE) initiative

PREZODE Initiative in a few words: Seventy-five percent of emerging human infectious diseases come from animals. Today the response to a pandemic risk begins only after the disease has spread to humans. This strategy is sometimes in failure as we have seen with the Covid-19 pandemic. The recurrence of such crises seems inevitable with enormous health, social, environmental and economic impacts. Several international studies have pointed out that investing in prevention would cost 100 times less than controlling future pandemics: the fight against pandemics must therefore begin with the mitigation of the risks of emergencies and their early detection. The initiative is consistent with the recent recommendations of the IPBES report (2020) on biodiversity and pandemics. It will build on recommendations from the High Level One Health Expert Panel, initiated last November. PREZODE has five pillars: 1. Zoonotic risk analysis; 2. Reduction of zoonotic risks; 3. Early detection and assessment of socio-economic impacts; 4. International zoonotic risk surveillance system; 5. Stakeholder engagement and co-development of regional health and biodiversity networks.

the PREZODE “ PREventing ZOonotic Diseases Emergence” initiative was launched as part of the 4^th edition of the One Planet Summit by France with the support of International Organizations as well as the European Commission through the voice of its President, Ursula von der Leyen.

The overall goal of PREZODE is to strengthen cooperation within and between several regions of the world that are facing high risks of zoonotic disease emergence. The initiative will catalyse both research activities and joint operational actions in order to better understand the risks and find appropriate solutions to reduce them. It will also improve surveillance and early warning systems, in co-construction with all relevant communities as well as with decision-makers.

The co-design with key actors and stakeholders is an essential component of the PREZODE initiative. We warmly thank those of you who already contributed by taking part in the workshops that were held in 5 regions of the world between the 14^th and 18^th of December 2020. A brief summary of the outcomes of these workshops is attached to this email. 

Since then, our preparatory committee (Cirad, INRAE and IRD) has further developed the co-construction specifications of PREZODE and launched since May 2021 a series of regional workshops with the aim of defining the strategic research agenda and operational plan 2021-2025 together with all of the participants.

At the European scale, this co-construction will also be set up through several workshops and we are very happy to invite you to the 1^st PREZODE workshop for Europe on July 6^th, 9:00-12:00 am, CET.

The aim of this first European workshop is as follows:

• to take stock of current research activities, 
• to brainstorm on ground-breaking science, research gaps, organisation and access to knowledge,  
• to identify the major areas of research with regard to European specificities that we would like to be addressed by PREZODE .

If you are not concerned or available to join the workshop, please do not hesitate to spread the word and share this invitation with relevant colleagues who may be interested in attending

The link to the workshop, as well as the agenda, will follow. In the meantime, please go ahead and register at the following link: 

https://forms.gle/fsqfKXN4eQCsSjGj9